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Thanks to Andrew for this. I would emphasise that bomb damage to sewage/water plants does not prove intent to attack such targets. A large proportion of bombs dropped land off target. My understanding of GWAPS is that attacks on sewage/water plants would not have been omitted from discussion due to sensitivity. It would be helpful if Ruth would say what GWAPS DOES say about sewage/water plants (eg that it had been decided that they should not be attacked directly). Of course, the overall effect was the same... Eric On Fri, 24 Jan 2003 10:28:29 +0000 Andrew Goreing <amg@newnham.org> wrote: > Does anyone have any further evidence on the following? > > I read Ruth Blakeley's message (23 Jan, Re: [casi] Dual crisis looms for > millions in Iraq) with interest and followed up her paper Bomb Now, Die > Later (available at http://www.civilwarfare.co.uk/) > > According to Ruth the GWAPS (Gulf War Air Power Surveys) provides no > evidence that sewage treatment or water purification plants were targeted by > the 1991 allied air campaign. She discounts the report of Ramsey Clark that > > "In all areas we visited, and all other areas reported to us, municipal > water processing plants, pumping stations and even reservoirs have been > bombed". > > Presumably the sentence she quotes from the 1996 WHO report that refers to > > "the extensive destruction of electrical generating plants, > water-purification and sewage treatment plants during the six-week 1991 > war..." > > does not in her view provide evidence that Allied forces actually bombed > such plants. > > Obviously, the Allied assault on the Iraqi electrical power infrastructure > plus the subsequent years of sanctions severely harmed the water > purification system. Probably no-one on the list is in any doubt about that. > But is there persuasive evidence that water-treatment plants were actually > bombed? > > Obvious issues -- > > Were there undisputed reports of HE damage at such plants? > > Could such damage have come from Iraqi ordnance? > > The GWAPS happily admits to intentional destruction of the electrical > system; however admission of attacks on water facilities (had there been > any) would be a rather more sensitive matter, one would have thought. > > Andrew Goreing > > > _______________________________________________ > Sent via the discussion list of the Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq. > To unsubscribe, visit http://lists.casi.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/casi-discuss > To contact the list manager, email casi-discuss-admin@lists.casi.org.uk > All postings are archived on CASI's website: http://www.casi.org.uk > ---------------------- Dr. Eric Herring Department of Politics University of Bristol 10 Priory Road Bristol BS8 1TU England, UK Office tel. +44-(0)117-928-8582 Mobile tel. +44-(0)7771-966608 Fax +44-(0)117-973-2133 eric.herring@bristol.ac.uk http://www.bris.ac.uk/Depts/Politics http://www.ericherring.com/ _______________________________________________ Sent via the discussion list of the Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq. To unsubscribe, visit http://lists.casi.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/casi-discuss To contact the list manager, email casi-discuss-admin@lists.casi.org.uk All postings are archived on CASI's website: http://www.casi.org.uk